Mavs have 71 'draft worthy' players to look at in NBA predraft camp in Chicago

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Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports/Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

A LOOK AT 5 PROSPECTS THE MAVERICKS COULD TAKE AT NO. 13 IN THE NBA DRAFT/ After an up and down season that saw the Mavs miss the playoffs for the first time since Mark Cuban has taken over as the owner, Dallas must now turn its attention to free agency and the draft. The Mavs haven't fared well in the draft in recent years but that could change if they pick one of these five players...

Since the NBA regular season ended, Maverick coach Rick Carlisle has immersed
himself in the upcoming draft, watching countless hours of video of college
prospects.

Starting today, he gets a chance to see most of them live for the first
time.

The Mavericks and every other team in the league will send a small army of
personnel to Chicago, where the NBA’s predraft camp begins Wednesday. The camp
is always an important time. But for the Mavericks, who will have their highest
draft pick in more than a decade, it’s even more significant this year.

“We’ve identified 71 guys that we believe are draft worthy, and this is our
first chance to see them in person,” Carlisle said Tuesday. “And I feel that
this draft is going to be a lot better than many people think. When you’re
drafting at 13 and 44, you have to be ready for anything.”

And, of course, there’s always the possibility, albeit remote, that the
Mavericks will move up in the draft lottery next week. They have a 0.6-percent
chance to get one of the top three picks. They have to be prepared with
information about the projected top picks, just in case that long shot comes
in.

While some of the top draft prospects don’t work out for the executives, they
all get measured and are available for interviews. Most of them participate in
games while the personnel managers watch.

“Every significant NBA exec and every significant agent — they’re all in one
place for three days,” Carlisle said. “So obviously, it’s a great place to see
everybody and there’s plenty of opportunities to talk.”

And mingle. With every mover and shaker in the league on hand, it’s a virtual
farmland filled with seeds of trade talks and free-agent chatter. The Mavericks
figure to be very active between now and the draft, which is June 27. Free
agency begins July 1.

The Mavericks will have a large contingent at Chicago, including president of
basketball operations Donnie Nelson, who will join Carlisle and his staff and
assistant GM Keith Grant and others.

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